Mandel Center Advances a Vision of Vibrant Jewish Leadership in Palm Beach and Beyond

According to Lindsay Hirsch, Vice President of the Mandel Center for Leadership Development (Mandel Center), her role is a mix of art and science, and “It really is ‘all about who’,” she says – a nod to the Mandel Center’s benefactor Mort Mandel whose leadership-focused memoir It’s ‘All About Who’ You Hire and How They Lead serves as ongoing inspiration for Mandel Center programs. The Mandel Center is an initiative of the Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County, whose relationship with the Mandel Foundation goes back two decades. In 2016, the Mandel Center was charged with formalizing the Federation’s long-standing commitment to developing high-performing volunteer and professional leadership for the Jewish community of the Palm Beaches.

The Mandel Center’s flagship programs are the Emerging Leadership Program (ELP) for early career professionals and the Mandel Leadership Institute (MLI), an intergenerational program for advanced leadership. Despite the tremendous success of ELP and MLI, Hirsch felt there was a missed opportunity to connect with recent college graduates who demonstrated an interest in service and leadership but were not ready for the Center’s higher-level programming. Noting all the professional milestones and growth during a person's mid-twenties, she felt that foundational knowledge of civic engagement would help prepare young adults “so that when they do decide to get involved, they don’t get lost in the ocean of nonprofit management.”

In response to this need, Hirsch developed the curriculum for LEAP – an acronym for the program’s core competencies: leadership, engagement, action and planning. LEAP is the newest of four signature leadership programs powered by the Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County, which celebrated graduates during the Federation’s May 2024 annual meeting. The inaugural cohort of LEAP joined a vibrant network of alumni from the Mandel Center for Leadership Development programs, including 150+ graduates of the ELP and MLI programs. During the annual meeting, Hirsch saw the sparks of interest and connection begin to take shape in the eleven LEAP graduates as they deepened their understanding of the Federation’s impact and their potential as future leaders.

Widely recognized as an expert in young leadership curriculum development, Hirsch is looking twenty years into the future with an eye toward global impact, a concept she has already begun to explore through a partnership with JDC Entwine. The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) and the Mandel Center are eager to define what it means to “think globally” regarding Judaism and leadership. “It’s not about what makes us different, it’s about what connects us,” says Hirsch, who also provides consulting support, advice and guidance to other Federations attempting to replicate the Center’s success.

“We are blessed to be funded by the Mandel Foundation and have an entire team that can focus on this, while other communities may only have one person,” she says, emphasizing the importance of shared language and collaboration “so we can be stronger as an entire people.” For those hoping to build leadership development into their programming, Hirsch asserts “there is no ‘one size fits all’ solution, or ‘secret sauce’ because each Federation is similar but different in every community.” Instead, she focuses on building a global community of thought leaders and thought partners with shared values around what it means to be an exceptional volunteer or lay leader.

The Mandel Center also graduated its first cohort of Wexner Heritage Program fellows this summer to further support this goal. If the LEAP program is equivalent to an ‘associate degree’ in Jewish leadership, then perhaps The Wexner Heritage program would be considered an elite, post-graduate course of study for experienced, dedicated Jewish lay leaders seeking an advanced development opportunity that will position them for national and international leadership at Federations, Jewish community partners, and worldwide Jewish organizations.

Because the Mandel Center engages participants ages 22-82 across all stages of life, it’s not uncommon for someone to participate in more than one Federation leadership program. Hirsch estimates that 30% of ELP alumni have participated in a second (or third) program, such as MLI or Wexner, a percentage expected to increase with the addition of the LEAP program.

The intergenerational aspects of Mandel Center programming are also integral to its success because multiple generations often serve on boards and committees together. This dynamic often created challenges in the past, but Mandel Center graduates are more inclined to see the value in each other’s unique perspectives, wisdom, and experiences.

With over 400 Mandel Center leaders serving in Federations or with partner agencies locally, nationally and internationally, the long-term impact of the Mandel Center programs and the Center’s evolution under Hirsch’s leadership are profound. To her, this is most evident in the breaking down of silos between organizations. “There used to be a lot of territorial behavior, but after eight years of dedicated effort, we’re seeing leaders pick up the phone and have meaningful conversations about shared concerns.” And that’s where the beauty happens, she says, “When leaders have a shared language around leadership values and a commitment to finding common ground, they have someone they can go to and say, ‘Do you have a technique, an approach, a different perspective?’” This values-focused approach expands their thinking and problem-solving ability, and it also strengthens the community as a whole.

Ultimately, Hirsch envisions a future where this collaborative spirit and shared leadership values become the norm for lay leaders in Federations and partner agencies, creating a sustainable leadership pipeline in Palm Beach and a more connected and resilient global Jewish community.

The Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County serves as the epicenter of community, volunteerism, and leadership for Jewish Palm Beach, one of North America's largest and most vibrant Jewish communities. The Mandel Center for Leadership Development was established in 2003 to serve as a leadership pipeline of highly qualified individuals to serve at the Federation and in the Palm Beach Jewish community. This longtime partnership was strengthened and expanded in 2016 when a $5 million Mandel Foundation grant established the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel headquarters in West Palm Beach, expanding its ability to support the safety and flourishing of Jewish life in Palm Beach, Israel and around the world.